Teamwork is something of an enigma. We hear about it all the time — how beneficial it is to the workplace, and how crucial it can be to productivity — but in the real world, teamwork isn’t something that just happens due to spontaneous office combustion. Real teamwork must be developed, cultivated, and fostered in order for it to have a real impact. Contrary to those email memes sent from well-meaning HR departments, teamwork is more than just a motivational poster or buzzword — to be successful, it has to be taken seriously. Here are 5 tips to help you cultivate a great team in your workplace.
Communicate
Too often, office communication is relegated to a few emails. If you’re committed to building the best team, start holding old-fashioned meetings with real live participation. To help energize your meetings, imagine your team as a secret club in which each of you is a valuable member, setting aside personal egos to allow for meaningful collaboration. In the end, that’s how wars are won.
Encourage Creativity
The best teams are the ones that encourage original, outside-of-the-box thinking. Make sure the atmosphere is conducive to sharing and swapping ideas, no matter how far-fetched they might initially seem. Sometimes the craziest ideas are the million-dollar ones. Remember Pet Rocks?
Appraise Individual Gifts — and Use Them
When embarking on a new project, take stock of your team members and their individual talents. Ask your colleagues if any have specific superhero abilities they can bring to the forefront for projects where special expertise is needed.
Motivate
Sometimes motivation can be as simple as providing pizza and cookies during a strategy meeting, or offering movie tickets or drinks coupons when goals are reached. Other times, motivation can be channeled into the pride of doing a good job and reaching company expectations. Just remember, when motivation is utilized as a teamwork strategy, it can be multiplied many times over into a powerful tool.
Create Common Goals
Before each project, it’s always a good idea to identify goals and expectations so nobody is left out of the loop. This means making sure everyone understands not only what needs to be done, but also what the end goals should be for each project. It also helps to prioritize expectations, so everyone starts off on a level playing field.
Good teamwork in the workplace requires considerable nurturing and diplomacy, but it can mean the difference between success and failure. By fostering effective teamwork practices in a positive way, your company can leverage each individual’s talents into a powerhouse package of productivity.